Your Picture of the day.

LOL, I've never sold any, but I've made a few as gifts.

 

My cherry tomato plant. I have three tomato cages in there holding that monster up and it's swallowed them all. Got baling twine running from the chicken house around it and back to keep it up off the walkway but it just laughed and sent out more to conquer the surrounding lands.

 

So what are you naming rhis one? Gigantor? Very nice love that you put them next too coop

 

That is Ser Gregor Clegane. I have a stunted, twisted little pepper plant named Tyrion too.

 

JmLe. That is one ferocious gard dog
@ditch witch. Lol

 

a hummingbird feast

 

thats one awesome pic there...

 

Not Baghdad

 

A bit of our bounty. Apricots are about ping pong ball size (first season to really have fruit), blackberries are from 1 plant, the little pot next to the big one is 4 1/2" for size reference. I'll cut and freeze some of the apricots, we'll have the blackberries for dessert today.

 

They're about an hour old.

 

BUNNY McNUGGETS!!!

 

Those are guinea pigs. Rabbit kits are born hairless and blind. With big ears.

 

I never shoot 'em that small.....

 

Guinea pigs, South American Steak.

 

Funny you should mention that. Am looking at importing some giant cuy out of Lima. Bred for eating but I'm betting they'll be a hit with the pet market.

 

Guinea Pig Today

• Home » »
• Adoption » »
• Health » »
• Products » »
• Lifestyle » »
• Entertainment » »
• Science
• Index

California’s Giant Guinea Pigs and the Cuys Criollos Mejorados
Posted by Nicole Peeples, CEO, Orange County Cavy Haven on Thursday, June 28, 2012 · 13 Comments

Image courtesy of Wee Companions
Pictured is Wee Companions founder, Fenella Speece, holding Titan, the second largest Cuy we have seen and the most tame. Titan was 5 pounds when Wee Companions discovered him in a shelter.

In 2010, small animal rescues in Southern California began receiving phone calls from animal shelters reporting extra large, “wild” guinea pigs. Many of the shelters did not normally contact rescues; yet the guinea pigs were so difficult to handle that shelters deemed them unadoptable. Rescues were puzzled at first, until a San Diego veterinarian posted photos on Facebook of a large, polydactyl guinea pig that resembled those found in the shelters. These guinea pigs came from a local Petco store. When asked about the guinea pigs, Petco queried their supplier and replied that “. . . these are a new type of guinea pig that they are testing. They were excited to hear that people noticed and liked them.”
These are in fact, not a new type of guinea pig. They bear a striking resemblance to the Cuys Criollos Mejorados commonly raised for food in South American countries such as Peru. Here are some characteristics they share with the Cuys:

• Always red, red and white or white in color (It is not acceptable to eat dark colored Cuys in Peru);
• May have Polydactyly, a mutation caused by inbreeding that results in extra toes;
• Weighing between four and eight pounds when full grown (average guinea pigs weigh about two pounds);
• Larger features, such as wider ears and huge feet.

Most of these Guinea pigs are feral and difficult to tame, especially if they have reached adulthood without much handling. They also possess superior jumping skills, and cannot be kept in an uncovered cage.

Image courtesy of OC Cavy Haven
A side view of an adolescent Cuy (Fiona, below) next to a full grown male guinea pig of average size (Acorn, top). Fiona was 1200 grams at the time and already longer than the adult male. She was not even close to full grown.

Several inside sources at Petco have revealed that these guinea pigs are indeed imported from Peru. Why would Petco import guinea pigs from Peru? It is likely that purchasing the Cuys is somehow more cost effective; since they are raised for meat and not for pets, they may wholesale for less. In addition, purchasing small animals from a meat grower instead of a pet breeder may furnish a loophole for Petco to escape inspection by APHIS, the division of the USDA that regulates pet breeding facilities. Since many of Petco’s distributors in recent years have been investigated and charged with animal cruelty and neglect, the company may be seeking creative ways to avoid further negative publicity while maintaining the profit margin. Further inquiries to Petco went unanswered.
The difficulty for rescues lies in the fact that these Cuys are not desirable pets for the average American family, most of who are interested in guinea pigs as docile pets for their children. The Cuys are incredibly strong and difficult to tame. They seem to have more fear of humans than domestic guinea pigs. Because of their wild nature, they are much more likely to be relinquished to a shelter than regular-sized guinea pigs. Even more disturbing are reports that the Cuys have a shorter lifespan and are prone to heart disease. Rescues are receiving reports of sudden, unexplained deaths before the age of three years old.

Image courtesy of OC Cavy Haven
A frontal comparison of their facial features. Notice how Fiona's head (left) is shaped differently from Acorn (right) and her ears appear so much larger.

Concerned small animal rescues contacted several government agencies to inquire about oversight on the practice of purchasing and selling the Cuys. The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) and, in California, the Department of Health Services Food and Drug Branch regulates the slaughter and sale of exotic animals for meat. However, the Cuys are being sold as pets and not slaughtered, which would be illegal in California according to penal code section 598b. It is not illegal to raise guinea pigs for food in California, as long as they are slaughtered elsewhere. It is not illegal to sell “meat” guinea pigs as pets.
Inquiries to other government organizations went nowhere. APHIS does not regulate slaughterhouses or facilities where animals are grown for meat. The California Dept of Fish and Game regulates the importation of non-native species. However, it will require genetic testing to prove that the Cuys are not the same species as Cavia porcellus, the common domestic guinea pig. They are most likely genetically very similar. Many of the guinea pigs raised for food in Peru are the same size as the domestic guinea pigs in the United States. The Cuys Criollos Mejorados are the results of selective breeding designed to produce larger, meatier animals for food consumption.

Image courtesy of OC Cavy Haven
A comparison of Fiona's foot (left) and Acorn's foot (right). Look at how truly different they appear. It's like a guinea pig Clydesdale!

In recent years, the promotion of guinea pigs as micro livestock has become very popular, especially in developing countries where raising cattle is problematic. In other words, the Cuys are not likely to go away anytime soon. None of the regulatory agencies are willing to claim jurisdiction over the sale of meat guinea pigs as pets. Cuys have started appearing in other pet store chains such as PetSmart and Kahoots. Since they appear similar to regular-sized guinea pigs when young, consumers may have a difficult time identifying the Cuys in pet stores. When they grow up to be wild giants, impossible for children to handle, they will continue to land in the local shelters.
Animal rescuers recommend that people avoid purchasing animals from pet stores. It perpetuates the existence of pet mills, which rely on supply and demand. In addition, the potential for purchasing a sick, mis-sexed, or pregnant animal is high, especially when dealing with rodents. Now there is even one more reason not to purchase animals from pet stores: the chance that you could receive a wild, untamable, short-lived, giant mutant—instead of a small, docile, family friendly pet that lives six to eight years.

Further reading:
GuineaLynx thread logging Cuy data
GuineaLynx thread on the discovery of Cuy
Translated page of helpful information on Cuy.

- See more at: California's Giant Guinea Pigs and the Cuys Criollos Mejorados - Guinea Pig Today

 

There's a well established breeding program at the Uni in Lima that's been 40+ years in the making to develop them. They're not mutants. Some breeders up in the Pacific Northwest already brought in 8 or 10, and they're neither wild nor impossible to handle, and the lifespans are as long as a regular guinea pig (probably longer since they don't get stuffed into Barbie clothes on a regular basis). Needless to say the rescue community is up in arms over them. They can't stand the idea of people eating rabbits. Guinea pig on a stick is unfathomable to them.

 

"Guinea pig on a stick is unfathomable to them."

I Once had Monkey on a stick with hot sauce. Does that count?